2013 NBA Playoffs

[dfwabel]

I understand the Lakers don't have money, but they didn't when they signed Gary Payton and Karl Malone either. Teams like that tend to find a way to make it all work; it's why they're the Lakers and other teams aren't.

I agree that any team would like to have Chris Paul, but I don't think he'll choose just any team. The Clippers are probably the best situation for him, but it also comes with the understanding that he has to tie his fortune and legacy to a heretofore terrible franchise. That's a big ask.

The penalties for being over the salary cap threshold today are much more punitive than under the previous two CBAs. Previously, the luxury tax was $1 for every dollar over the salary cap threshold.

It is worse under the new CBA, especially if you fall under being a "Repeater".

That is why there was the thought that the LAL need to amnesty Kobe or Gasol this off-season.

[HedleyLamarr]

It's not like the Lakers can't afford whatever luxury tax is assessed to them.

[vmd9]

Chris Paul isn't going anywhere. He'll want to join a big market contenders and I really don't see a lot of teams that could afford it. If anything maybe the Knicks, Nets, or Celtics? The Knicks have always been my second favorite team, so I'd be really disappointed if he ended up in NY.

[dfwabel]

It's not like the Lakers can't afford whatever luxury tax is assessed to them.

But if you get hit with the repeater, and your $90M payroll causes you $65M in luxury tax, even if you are the Buss family and the team income from local TV and tickets, needlessly losing that much revenue annualy will get old d@mn quickly.

Last season was the first year in which the being eligible for the repeater started, with teams to get hit with it starting in 2014-15.

What is the repeater tax? It's a clause in the new collective bargaining agreement that raises the luxury tax rate for teams that are serial tax payers. It doesn't actually go into effect until 2014-15 as a penalty, but what teams do now affects whether they'll be on the hook then. Basically, if you exceed the tax threshold in three out of the previous four seasons, you're on the hook for the higher tax if you exceed the threshold again. The "clock" began last year. The first year of the repeater tax is in 2014-15. Only teams that have been taxpayers in 2011-12, 2012-13 and 2013-14 will pay it. In 2015-16, teams that have paid the tax in three out of four of those seasons will pay repeater tax. Then 2011-12 falls off. And so it goes.

How bad is the repeater tax? At the first level of luxury tax -- up to $5 million over the threshold -- the base tax will be $1.50 for every dollar over the line. The repeater tax is $2.50 for every dollar over the line. It matches as you rise up the ladder from there -- the repeater tax is always $1 per dollar in exceedance of the threshold more than the base rate. For $20 million over the threshold, that's a $20 million difference based on whether you're a repeater or not.

Here's an example. Let's assume the luxury tax threshold rises to $75 million by 2014-15. Let's say a team like the Lakers has a payroll of $95 million -- $20 million over the threshold. If they were not repeater, their total tax payment would be $45 million, and their total payroll would be $140 million. If they were a repeater, their total tax payment would be $65 million, and their total payroll would be $160 million.

[DG_ThenNowForever]

The Lakers could afford it, but you're right, I don't think they'd want to make a habit of it.

Chris Paul staying with the Clippers is certainly possible, but again, it'd be unusual. It's not often that prime superstar players commit to an untested team; I can't think of a guy who went to a historically struggling NBA franchise by choice and said, yep, this is what I want to do. Perhaps others can think of examples?

I thought about the Celtics too, except Rando is still there and is a pretty amazing player in his own right. I think he's there guy until at least the 2014-15 season, at which point Paul is long gone.

[pmoehrin]

Chicago playing about as good of a game as you can hope for. They had to play a near perfect game to win, but so far they're doing just that. I've only seen them make three maybe four bad plays on both offense and defense thus far. That's as good as your going to get.

[dfwabel]

The Lakers could afford it, but you're right, I don't think they'd want to make a habit of it.

Chris Paul staying with the Clippers is certainly possible, but again, it'd be unusual. It's not often that prime superstar players commit to an untested team; I can't think of a guy who went to a historically struggling NBA franchise by choice and said, yep, this is what I want to do. Perhaps others can think of examples?

I thought about the Celtics too, except Rando is still there and is a pretty amazing player in his own right. I think he's there guy until at least the 2014-15 season, at which point Paul is long gone.

If your business could lose $60-90M dollars/year needlessly, that $hit would get old with all six of the kids in the Buss Family Trust, especially those who have the lowest shares of the team who cannot sell them.

CP3 staying with the LAC is an additional year (5 over 4) and more money in year five.

However LAC is going from the "NBA known", CP3 contract and Del Negro as HC (to 'LightsOut' chagrin) to the "NBA unknown": New CBA w/ repeater tax, possible new coach*, the onus to resign All-NBA free agents.

*- What new coach will be able to make them a champion? The list of championship coaches is small as it is and Al Attles, Dick Motta, Lenny Wilkens, Bill Fitch, KC Jones, Billy Cunningham and Pat Riley 'ain't walking through that door", so that leaves Rudy T. and Larry Brown who have won the 'chip. Who? Nate McMillan? Mo Cheeks? Brian Shaw? Mike Malone? Mike Budenholzer (SAS)?

[Nyk33]

The Miami Heat must love this 4th quarter between the Bulls and Nets.

We are half way through the quarter and both teams have scored a combined 10 points.

[dbadefense1990]

The Miami Heat must love this 4th quarter between the Bulls and Nets.

We are half way through the quarter and both teams have scored a combined 10 points.

It's the perfect recipe for the Heat. While they get a week+ rest period, the Bulls and Nets sweat against eachother in a defensive, tiring elimination game.

So far, the pieces are falling into Miami's place for a relatively-easy repeat.

[Lights Out]

Chris Paul staying with the Clippers is certainly possible, but again, it'd be unusual. It's not often that prime superstar players commit to an untested team; I can't think of a guy who went to a historically struggling NBA franchise by choice and said, yep, this is what I want to do. Perhaps others can think of examples?

Deron Williams with the Nets just last summer.

[Kramerica Industries]

The only one that gets clowned by Joe Johnson in the playoffs is his own team. He goes into Hamburglar Mode come the postseason.

Something tells me you will have a hearty laugh looking at his line tonight.

[BlackBolt3]

Well, that Bulls-Nets series had kinda saved what was a boring playoffs so far.

[Billy B]

What a great performance by the Bulls tonight. Noah played an amazing game and Belinelli put up 20+ points for the second game in a row. I kinda hate the phrase, but it just looked like the Bulls wanted it more. Hopefully Hinrich and Deng are able to come back, because they're going to need both of them to even have a remote chance of getting by the Heat. But that sure was one fun series to watch.

[CS85]

Well, that Bulls-Nets series had kinda saved what was a boring playoffs so far.

I doubt Bulls/Heat will be exciting at all. Even with Rose at his peak, LeBron & The Superfriends are playing a different tier of basketball. If the Bulls beat the Heat/LeBron in a 7 game series without Rose, it would be the sports upset of the decade and be argued among some of the greatest upsets ever.

[BlackBolt3]

Well, that Bulls-Nets series had kinda saved what was a boring playoffs so far.

I doubt Bulls/Heat will be exciting at all. Even with Rose at his peak, LeBron & The Superfriends are playing a different tier of basketball. If the Bulls beat the Heat/LeBron in a 7 game series without Rose, it would be the sports upset of the decade and be argued among some of the greatest upsets ever.

Yeah, I guess it should have said saved it for me.

Sometime along the series, I became a Bulls fan. I just... like them. Besides, the most local team (Bobcats) is just awful. (I still expect a Heat sweep though.)

[Nyk33]

I love that this Nets team got bounced. After all the smack from Prokhorov, the Nets PR, the mayor of Brooklyn, and even a couple of Nets players (Joe Johnson & Humphries) about taking over the city and being better than the Knicks in the end it is the boys in blue & orange that advanced farther in the playoffs and had a better regular season record.

Now eat your crow and humble pie and shut up.

[pmoehrin]

The Miami Heat must love this 4th quarter between the Bulls and Nets.

We are half way through the quarter and both teams have scored a combined 10 points.

It's the perfect recipe for the Heat. While they get a week+ rest period, the Bulls and Nets sweat against eachother in a defensive, tiring elimination game.

So far, the pieces are falling into Miami's place for a relatively-easy repeat.

Honestly I'm not so sure I would want rest if I were the Heat in this spot.

I think 3-4 days is fine, but once you get past that I don't thinks there much of if any benefit. All your going to do is get bored and feel more sore.

That being said though, without Rose and probably without Deng as well (meningitis is not something you just get over in a day or two), I just don't think Chicago has the horses to compete. I thought they played great tonight. They brought their A game and just outhustled the Nets from the opening tip, but hard work is only going to get you so far against a team like Miami.

The Heat are a team with three possibly four future Hall of Famers on the roster. You don't get to that level without hard work, so forgot trying to outwork or outhustle a team like that. You may be able to do that for a game, two if your lucky, but even then its no guarantee you'll win.

For the Bulls to have any chance in this series, Rose has to come back. Its that simple. If he doesn't Chicago will be lucky to get to six. And even if Rose comes, it still may not be enough. It would asking a lot for Derrick Rose to play at a high level and lead Chicago to a win with no games played up to this point. I wouldn't take it as a reason for him to sit out, but its still something to take note of.

This is also where the criticism of Rose not playing is going to start getting loud. You heard Steve Kerr elude to the fact that Rose might be sitting out for reasons unrelated to him re injuring his knee. I heard Shaq and Barkely basically say it was BS for Rose to be practicing and going through pre-game warm ups at full speed for two months now with no known setbacks but show no intention of returning. Those aren't people you can just blow off under the pretense of not understanding or knowing what they are talking about.

[DG_ThenNowForever]

I don't think this has been a boring playoffs at all. You had multiple six-game series, a legitimate chance at an 8 seed upsetting the 1, the Lakers imploding, the Grizzlies ascending, and a surprisingly tight Heat/Bucks series. Yeah, not every series went seven games, but when do they ever?

I think the Heat should beat the Bulls, but either the Knicks or Pacers are far from a pushover. Both have played the Heat well the past couple of years (the Pacers more so), and they're likely feeling a little more fresh at this point.

[dbadefense1990]

Well, that Bulls-Nets series had kinda saved what was a boring playoffs so far.

Let's evaluate the playoffs so far, in terms of drama and excitement:

Heat/Bucks---> F (of course)

Pacers/Hawks---> D (because the Hawks are the kind of NBA team who are a mid-level underdog, but boring to watch and hated for it)

Celtics/Knicks---> B- (terrible first three games brought down the grade but last three pulled the grade up)

Bulls/Nets---> C+ (Game 4 salvaged a series where nobody looked like they wanted to face the Heat)

Spurs/Lakers---> F (this wasn't even close)

Clippers/Grizzlies---> B+ (good quality series marred by Joey Crawford and the fact that the Clippers blew the series, losing every time by 10+ points)

Warriors/Nuggets---> A- (Mark Jackson's accusations, the Warriors' inexperience being tested, Stephen Curry...easily the best series so far)

Thunder/Rockets---> B (Rockets found new life after Westbrook's injury but Durant eventually overtook the series at the end)

OVERALL GRADE/GPA---> C, 2.00

[Unocal]

To those who are gonna say the Bulls have so much heart, guts and are the most courageous team ever- This team had games where they looked lifeless. I saw this team get railroaded at Denver and Sacramento- and that was with a healthier team!

The Bulls have what I call Cruise Control heart- they give you everything or nothing.